Hindraf ropes in parents for new Tamil school suit

Hindraf yesterday moved to recruit parents of Tamil school students in a bid to refile its lawsuit against the government, which among others, demands for full aid for 523 Tamil schools in the country.

“Hindraf has launched a website as well as pamphlets, text messages and campaigns on social media to gather at least 100 parents with children studying at Tamil schools as aggrieved plaintiffs.

“This is to refile a lawsuit which is the A to Z solution to the Tamil school problems in Malaysia,” Hindraf information chief S Jayathas (left) said in a statement yesterday.

The move comes after its earlier lawsuit was dismissed by the Kuala Lumpur High Court on June 20, citing that the plaintiffs, Hindraf de facto leader P Uthayakumar and Kota Alam Shah state assemblyperson M Manoharan, did not have locus standi.

“The court said that the two did not have locus standi to institute this public interest civil suit in that they are not aggrieved parties but merely acting in the general interests of the Indian poor as their children are already in secondary school and not in Tamil school,” said Jayathas.

The suit sought for a declaration that the status of Tamil schools as partially-aided and not fully-added as ultra vires of article 4, 8 and 12 of the federal constitution.

Among some of the 16-point prayers in the lawsuit are:

• Tamil primary schools in wooden buildings built during the British era, in shophouses or in ship containers with more than 25 students be rebuilt or repaired,

• All Tamil primary schools should have at least a land size of 10 acres,

• Tamil primary schools should be given aid equal to the per capita aid enjoyed by national schools,

• A Tamil boarding school be built in every district particularly for poor Indian students,

• A Tamil secondary school be built in every peninsula state except Kelantan, Terangganu and Perlis, and

• RM55 billion compensation to “undo the state-sponsored and private sector 1Malaysian government injustices”.

Meanwhile, Jayathas said Uthayakumar and Monoharan will still appeal the earlier dismissal at the Courts of Appeal next week.

A meeting was also chaired by Uthayakumar this evening at its headquarters in Bangsar among some 30 concerned parents who backed the plan.

‘Two-prong’ strategy

When approached later, Uthayakumar said this was a “two-prong” strategy adopted by the party where it will appeal the case while gathering relevant parties to refile a new case.

“This is just our first meeting, our next meeting will be in Klang where we will gather the names of parents who are interested in the lawsuit,” he said.

The meeting will be held on July 29 at 11am behind the Klang Mariamman temple at Padang Chetty.

Pointing out the seriousness of the state of Tamil schools in the country, Uthayakumar (right) pointed to a Sinar Harian report yesterday where a new Tamil primary school in Sabah Bernam was built beside high tension cables.

“An Indonesian worker was killed building the school and the students have now refused to go to the school and are using a temporary facility.

“There is so much land in Malaysia, why must a Tamil school be beside high tension cables?” he said.